As long as there's profit to be made, anything is negotiable.

Helping Su Yehao spread some smoke and mirrors wasn't only profitable, but it also bolstered his reputation in the industry. A win-win situation.

Huang Daixian readily nodded, "Easy peasy! I'm on TV all the time, giving interviews. I'll find a way to use you as an example, and then get the newspapers to write a few articles. Young master, are you having trouble with your love life?"

"Not exactly trouble, more like taking precautions. Both are dear to me, but too many romantic debts can give you a headache."

"Tsk… I wish I had that headache. Unfortunately, I wasn't as handsome or capable as young master Su when I was young. I admire you…"

Su Yehao had only come up with this seemingly unreasonable request on a whim.

Mainly to avoid being targeted by the media in the future, and to reassure the girls and their families by giving them a reason for his behaviour.

Having multiple partners makes people angry.

But "it's his destiny" makes things seem normal.

It seemed strange and unreliable, but many people bought it.

If the saying "destined for romantic encounters" was spread first, then the existence of Jiang Yu and Nong Qingying would be easier to accept.

That way, if his private life was exposed, confirming Huang Daixian's claims, it would not only reduce public attention but also make people think that Huang Daixian was indeed a great immortal, and that he was very accurate.

Su Yehao couldn't let Huang Daixian work for nothing. Under the pretext of inviting newspaper editors to dinner, Su Yehao wrote him a check for HK$200,000.

Huang Daixian had earned more than 300,000 from the father and son in just over an hour, so he was more than happy. He immediately agreed, saying that he would find an opportunity to spread the news soon.

As he was about to get out of the car.

Su Yehao asked with interest, "I heard that you've helped many companies, Daixian. How did you really make them money?"

"If I calculate correctly, it might be because I studied economics? University of Manchester, class of '74. I'm still pretty good at doing business, but remember to keep this a secret for me, young Mr. Su."

"... I have to admire you. Next time someone asks you for financial advice, just tell them to invest in internet companies on NASDAQ. Buy at the beginning of the year, and sell at the end of the year. It will definitely boost your reputation by a few more levels."

He just said it casually as a joke.

Anyway, it didn't affect Su Yehao's interests, so it didn't matter if he mentioned it.

Huang Daixian seemed thoughtful after hearing this.

The economy in Hong Kong had been sluggish in the past two years, and his business had been difficult. The emerging internet business was so popular that he could try it, adding an overseas business and recommending it to those big clients who didn't mind losing money.

If he made money, it would be to his credit.

If he didn't make money, there was Su Yehao's example, so he could only say that they were unlucky, or that something had gone wrong, such as being sabotaged by someone. There were plenty of reasons…

——————————————

While the little girl was at home with her mother.

After lunch, Su Yehao continued to find Yin Liuli, taking her out to sea on a yacht.

Small activities were temporarily gone, but simply enjoying the time together was just as enjoyable.

Two more days passed in the blink of an eye.

The survey team sent to the Maldives had already made initial contact with the management of the Global Resort Hotels Group, and contacted the shareholders behind the company.

The major shareholders were two British brothers, from the same family, each holding 41% of the company's shares. Their father founded Global Resort Hotels Group more than twenty years ago.

Now, with the founder's death, the shares were passed on to the younger generation.

According to the initial investigation results, the brothers were not interested in the islands. They lived in London all year round and were too lazy to participate in management personally, so they arranged for professional managers to be responsible for specific business operations.

There were also four other minor shareholders, all locals of the Maldives. Only one of them still lived in the Maldives, while the other three went to the UK, France, and Austria respectively.

This only goes to show that although the scenery is beautiful, it is difficult to keep people there.

It would be great to escape from the big city and vacation on a beautiful tropical island for one or two weeks each year.

But staying on a small island all day long, with only the sea in sight, a limited variety of food, a lack of entertainment, and inferior medical care, education, and culture compared to the mainland, it's no wonder that even the shareholders who do business in the Maldives have moved to other places.

Such is human nature, other people's things are always the best.

Tourists often regret that they cannot settle down on the beautiful tropical islands, but they do not know that the locals are equally envious of the outside world.

Therefore.

When Su Yehao took the initiative to send someone to contact the major shareholder brothers of Global Resort Hotels Group.

The two brothers discussed it and offered a price of 20 million pounds that day, which was slightly higher than the valuation made by McKinsey Consulting through performance.

In those years, one pound was equivalent to about one dollar and sixty cents, which was roughly equal to thirty-two million US dollars, which was a bit high.

In business, others can offer a price, and Su Yehao can also counteroffer.

When he asked his assistant, Zhuang Wei, to tell the delegation that his psychological price was around 15 million pounds, and to continue to negotiate with the brothers, the other party lowered the price to 18 million pounds.

They also gave a lot of reasons, saying that other shareholders did not agree, that they had invested a lot of costs, and so on.

According to the news Su Yehao received, when the Global Resort Hotels Group was first established, it only cost more than 100,000 pounds to invest in the first Coconut Island. They were the first Maldives resort hotel investors to eat crabs, and their value has increased a lot over the past twenty years.

Not only that, the hotels on the island were a bit old and needed to be renovated.

Therefore, Su Yehao set a firm price and was only willing to pay 15.5 million pounds. If they were willing to sell, they would sell. If they were not willing to sell, he would just buy a deserted island and develop it himself, building a five-star resort to grab their business.

He originally thought that the negotiations might break down, but on the morning when he returned to Hong Kong, Su Yehao received a call saying that the British brothers had agreed.

The requirement was that he bear part of the tax, about 400,000 to 500,000 pounds, and that he retain a shareholder's shares.

The shareholder who wanted to stay was the one who still lived in the Maldives.

The other party held a total of 3.5% of the shares and was currently the vice president of the hotel group. He treated this asset as a career and was unwilling to take the money and leave.

He was just a small shareholder, and he couldn't delay his own important affairs because of this little thing.

After hearing this, Su Yehao considered it for a few seconds and agreed. He asked his assistant, Zhuang Wei, to arrange for some representatives to go to London to sign the contract.

As for the payment, he could continue to get a loan from the Bank of China. With the continuous appreciation of assets, he had already unfrozen some of the pledged shares in the Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank of Japan. It was certainly no problem to get a mere 10 million pounds.

The purchase price was a bit high, mainly because all five islands under the Global Resort Hotels Group had permanent land rights. If it was just a long-term lease, the price would be much cheaper.

It was now more difficult to purchase islands with permanent land rights from the Maldives government.

The reason was very touching.

The country was already very small, and if they continued to sell it, it would be easy to sell it all away.

To date, four of the five islands have been developed, with a total of seven independently operated hotels.

There was also Olivalhu Island, which covers 34.6 acres and is located in the northern Maldives. It was purchased eight years ago for 1.75 million US dollars.

Due to a shortage of funds, it has not yet been developed…